I was sitting around, bored out my mind and starving for something productive to do. I considered reading, I considered running, and I even considered doing something as weird as watching television—my mind came to the rescue and I realized something, I haven't really picked up a pencil in about… say… two years.

I've doodled, I've randomly sketched, but I haven't sat down for long periods of time and drawn something that I've liked. Maybe reading could offer something worthwhile, maybe running could help with this bitchin' back pain I've been having, and maybe television could—could—could… yeah, that won't do much of anything.

: /

So, Menewsha, it seems like you guys have some style, and I like style. I've ran into several avatars around here that looked like they needed to be slapped onto a piece of paper with some TLC, I just haven't gotten off my butt to actually... draw 'em. If you guys would be so kind as to jump in here and flaunt your stuff, it would be greatly appreciated.

Now, I'm warning you now, two years of maybe picking up a pencil about once or twice every month for drawing purposes has taken it's toll, and I'm young, I'm still on that little search to find a style that's "me" and… I'm still trying to get a good grasp of the what, why, and how of drawing without jumping into an art class; I'm artiscally out-of-shape, but expect something amazing, because that always gives me a proper jolt in the rear to get goin'. Some of these "sketches" will be quick and messy while others might be... messy in the cleaniest of ways and probably a bit sluggish, ha-ha—I'm going to be trying out different styles, so some things are going to look different.

IN A NUTHSHELL...
- Looking for some practice, criticism and tips are very much loved. I need to work on my facial anatomy as well as general body structure.
- I need practice with drawing males of all kinds, I also need to practice drawing different body types. If your artwork comes out looking chubby or deathly thin, know I was practicing. On the flip side, don't think I won't draw females!
- Different nationailites are something I need to work with, too—your avatar is just as likely to come out looking "American" as it is Asian.
- Children and "super deformed" (chibi) characters are also something I need practice with, actually, anything that falls under "cute" I need practice with, ha-ha...
- Link to tutorials are very much loved! Suggestions of your own are normally taken to heart.
- I'm a bit afraid of full body drawings, ha-ha, so some of these, if not most, are going to be head or shoulder shots—try to kick me out of my comfort zone.
- I'd love to do an art trade; tip at your own accord.
- I'm only going to draw avatars I like! However, if you stay and chat, I might draw you a thank you gift. Don't be afraid to jump in here if you're butt-ass naked, either, I'm a sucker for hair.
- I really look up to other artist, inspire me with artwork of your own or of your favorite artist!
- Don't be afraid to suggest what you want; don't get angry if I alter some things on your avatar.
- I'm deathly afraid of inking and coloring, suggestions and tutorials on this subject would be amazing.
- Yes, I'll do original characters/characters/GAIA avatars too. : D

SAMPLES
(Extremely sketchy, and yes, I know, on some of these they eyes are out of proportion with the body—suggestions and tips on how to fix this are greatly appreciated)

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LIST
1. oHsoDemandinG ( Avatar ) DRAWNING/FINISHED
2. Lucentas ( Original Character - Deciding ) DRAWING/FINISHED
3. Hatsune Miku ( Original Avatar XD ) DRAWING/FINISHED
4. Esmereina ( Avatar ) DRAWING/FINISHED
5.
6.
7.
...
20.

ALSO! I've been bored with music lately, suggestion some songs, artist, and bands... I listen to everything. : D

I love your name!!

XD! Thank you~
I love the art in your signature! It's so adorable. <3

Thanks! She's actually giving out freebies for the event.

Hey there (:
If you fancy having a go at my avi i'd be very grateful.
I wouldn't mind if you changed anything or did something differently either.
Thanks if you decide to try mine <3

oHsoDemandinG: Who drew that in your sig, it's soo good!

A good tip that helps with eye proportion is to imagine a front-on face as being four "eyes" wide. Three eyes in the middle, with half of an eye on either side. The two full eyes flanking the middle eye are where your actual eyes go.

It's...sort of hard to explain without a visual representation...

@ oHsoDemandinG
Really?! I should drop by there, but I'm not really dressed for sucess at the moment, ha-ha!

@ lunanuova

Your avatar looks like it would be pretty fun to draw, but I'm not sure just yet. Hm... I'll consider it!

@ Lucentas

I've actually heard the tip somewhere before, different variations of it at least.
I'll try it out on the next avatar I draw—I get what you're sayin'. : DD

Like this: ()(o)_(o)(), right?
Or, something like that...

It was az_stars.

Oh yeah. If you would like to practice with my avatar, I'm a-okay with it.

.You're samples are beautiful.
.You are very talented.

@ oHsoDemandinG

Hm, I really like the upper-part of your avatar, and it looks like it would be fun to experiment so~ I'll add you to the list. : D

Yes, something like that. I'll try to offer more advice, but I'm still a beginner, myself. Are there any other specific areas you're having trouble in?

Cool. Thanks!! Experiment away.

Oh, uh...not sure if this'll help, but here's a list of some of my OCs if you feel like practicing with any of them. http://misao-chan.deviantart.com/journal/15934642/

They're not very interesting, I'm afraid.

@ Lucentas

Yes, actually, quite a few...

Namely full body... er... structure, I'm sort of familiar with the whole shape/skeleton/circles/triangles thing, but I can never push myself to use it or... everytime I try something comes out wrong. It does help with placing everything in the right place when it comes to faces, but for a full body—legs, arms, waist, etc.—I just can't seem to do it and most of the time rely on... instict, ha-ha.

That probably didn't make sense. DD':

Thanks, by the way~

Edit: Not very interesting?! Ha, I just scrolled down the page and saw several characters I want to draw! Mm... this is going to be a hard one in terms of pickin'... Any certain male OC you'd like to be drawn, ha-ha?

Hm...well, if you mean proportion-wise, the best way to get a feel for proportions is to go out and do some life sketching, drawing real people, to better understand how bodies are put together.

But here are a few pointers I've picked up over the years:

- The body can be divided into equal halves roughly around the hip area; basically, that means that the head and torso are roughly as long as the legs.
- The shoulders should have about half of a head's width on either side of the head itself for females--slightly wider for males.
- When the arm hangs to the side, the elbow should fall at the thinnest portion of the waist, and the fingertips should reach to mid-thigh.

I love your style! O.O;; It's a great cross between realistic and cartoon/anime/manga in my opinion. I can just draw little stick people. ;_; If you draw me maybe you could reference to this picture rather than to my avatar? o: http://i26.tinypic.com/20r2s1t.jpg

@ Hatsune Miku

>//<

Aw! Thank you so much, ha-ha! That's what I've been trying to aim for style-wise, but I want to add in a bit more realism, ha-ha.

I'll add you to the list, I like your avatar, ha-ha—would you be alright if I mixed the reference picture and your avatar togetheer somehow? I have something in mind. ; D

You're welcome! :D Well, your style is turning out wonderfully~ I love it. ^o^b And sure! ;O I'm really curious as to what you'd do~ >o>;; I hope you draw me so I can see. 8D; I'm 100% sure it'll be awesome, though! xD

Ack, I gotta go. Good luck with everything.

@ Lucentas

Thank you for all your help!
Later~

@ Hatsune Miku

It'll be a mixture of the two, just imagine things from your avatar and things from the picture put together. : D

Er... it'll hel me in terms of the "cute" department! There's a hint. ; D

Byebye Lucentas! :3

Bom -- I think I can come up with an idea or two~ ;o I can't wait~! o 3o

So, where exactly is that character from? I've seen her around a lot of places but not sure exactly, say... what she is.

I think I remember something about music... and fighting... and video games, but I could just be confused and crazy, XD!

Well, she's a voice synthesizer program thing. o 3o Well, part of it. People use her voice to make songs and such. There's lots others like her as well. :D http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocaloid They're called Vocaloids~ A lot of people make art of them/videos/CG game thingies.. I dunno how to explain it. xD; It's hard to know everything. *_*; Miku, Kaito Rin&Len are my favorites. (8 The outfit that I showed a picture of is from one of Miku's songs called World Is Mine. 8) I babble too much, jeez. o 3o;; That's also a side affect of mine from being lazy and hot~ Talking nonsense. >>;

Your sketches are cute! ^^ i adore them.. is it possible to ask for a slot? ^^;

You are very detailed...its something i fail at alot..but i am working on it too...although im afraid to put it out there at the moment..^^;

@ Hatsune Miku

XD! With the way the weather has been, I better everyone is babbling, but yeah, I've heard of Vocaloids, I just never really looked into it...

It looks interesting... and adorable, ohman, really adorable; it deals with effin' music, too, so that kills, like, twelve birds with a pebble.

<333

Now I want to snag that program just to fool around with it, ha-ha.

@ Esmereina

Oh! Ha-ha, thank you so much. : DD
I like your avatar, it has a sort of warrior princess/amazon/goddess/adorable feel to it, I mos' def' have to draw it.

... Hopefully I can get out what I'm seein' in my head onto paper, XP!